Block Components record the major shared building elements associated with an individual housing block. Examples include communal roofs, door-entry systems, lifts and shared floor coverings.
These components are used by the Asset Management module to forecast future replacement costs and produce Stock Condition reports.
To access Block Components, open the required Housing Group and select the Blocks tab. Select the required Block, click Asset Management and then select Block Components.
Before You Begin
Important: Before Block Components can be configured, the Block’s Year Built must be recorded.
The Year Built forms the basis of Stock Condition forecasting whenever a component does not have an Override First Replacement Year or Last Replaced Year specified.
If the Year Built has not been entered, the Block’s Asset Management area displays a warning and its Components cannot be configured or forecast.
To add a missing Year Built, open the Block’s Options menu and select Edit Block.
Updating Block Components
When a Block has not yet been configured, the Block Components page displays an empty state. Click the Update link to begin defining the Block’s components.
Once Block Components have been configured, click the Update button to modify the existing information.
Unlike Property Asset Management, Asset Management Profiles are not applied to Blocks. Block Components are selected and configured directly for each Block.
Configuring Block Components
The Block Components page displays all available Block Component Types.
For each component, you can specify whether it is present within the Block and, where appropriate, record additional information that will improve the accuracy of long-term forecasting.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Component | The name of the shared building element. |
| Present | Indicates whether the component exists within the Block. Only components marked as present are included in Stock Condition calculations. |
| Standard Cost | The typical replacement cost defined for the Block Component Type. |
| Standard Life Cycle | The expected replacement interval defined for the Block Component Type. |
| Adjusted Life Cycle | Overrides the standard life cycle for this Block. This allows the component to have a longer or shorter replacement interval where appropriate. |
| Override First Replacement Year | Specifies the first planned replacement year for the component. This is useful where a replacement programme has already been scheduled. |
| Last Replaced Year | Records the year in which the component was last replaced. Affinity uses this information when forecasting future replacement dates. |
After making the required selections and changes, click Save Components.
Forecasting Replacement Costs
Affinity determines future replacement dates using the following information, in order of priority:
- Override First Replacement Year, if specified.
- Last Replaced Year together with the component’s Life Cycle.
- The Block’s Year Built together with the component’s Life Cycle.
If an Adjusted Life Cycle has been entered, it is used instead of the Standard Life Cycle when calculating future replacement dates.
Where the calculated replacement date is in the past, Affinity advances it by the applicable Life Cycle until it reaches the next future replacement year.
Good Practice
Only select components that are shared by the Block as a whole. Components belonging to an individual dwelling should be recorded as Property Components against that property.
Recording accurate replacement information for major shared elements such as roofs, lifts and door-entry systems will significantly improve the accuracy of long-term expenditure forecasts.
Where a component has already been replaced, record the Last Replaced Year rather than changing the Block’s Year Built. This provides a more realistic forecast while preserving the historical information about the Block.
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